12 minute read
Research & Promotion
Collaboration Across The Cotton Belt
Cotton Incorporated Develops Partnerships To Coordinate With Cotton Farmers’ Priorities
The Agricultural and Environmental Research Division at Cotton Incorporated wears many different hats. We often hear of them partnering to support on-farm research projects, managing funded projects or giving presentations at industry meetings.
But one area that is often overlooked is their commitment to promote Beltwide industry collaboration among major companies, universities and researchers to leverage Cotton Research and Promotion Program assessment dollars. This provides the opportunity for Cotton Incorporated directors to continually develop relationships beyond research projects being directly funded by Cotton Incorporated.
“A large part of my job is spending time visiting with current or potential partners in the industry that align with cotton growers’ priorities,” Dr. Gaylon Morgan, AERD director with Cotton Incorporated, says.
“These partners come in a variety of forms: public and private sector researchers from across the world, colleagues at different commodity groups, start-up companies, and cotton growers, just to name a few.
“But the common theme is how I can utilize my relationships with these partners to provide avenues for collaboration and the opportunity to continually keep cotton on the forefront of new technologies and research advancements.”
Roundtable Conversations
One example of using these relationships for the benefit of cotton producers happened recently in Texas when several individuals needed to discuss overall cotton seed quality across the country. Two Cotton Incorporated directors, Drs. Kater Hake and Gaylon Morgan, organized a roundtable discussion among certified producer organizations, cotton seed company representatives and key seed quality researchers from two different universities.
Topics included: New research ideas. The best equipment and its availability to help increase the quality of data being collected. Opportunities to implement the research findings at the company level. Priorities of cotton growers across the Cotton Belt. The affect cotton seed modifications would have on the ginning and crushing sector.
Another focus of the conversation was how the industry could come together as a whole to better understand the genetic, environmental and management factors that affect seed quality and stand establishment.
Cotton Incorporated staff facilitated discussion before, during and after the meeting on new research ideas. They also were vital in linking the correct people together to advance the understanding of seed quality across the Cotton Belt.
“While it’s easy to focus individually on what one seed company provides to growers or what one research entity publishes, it’s the facilitation behind the scenes and big picture ideas that create the environments to advance research, which will equate to long-term grower profitability,” Morgan says.
BY CHRISTI SHORT
ROCHESTER, TEXAS
Texas Supports Camera Project
Another Cotton Incorporated initiative is a move to combat plastic contamination in the field, in the gin and at the spinning mills. One of the earliest projects in which Cotton Incorporated invested started with Texas State Support funds. The goal was to see if a video camera monitoring system at the module feeder would help gins identify and remove plastic.
Since this initial project started, the National Cotton Council has taken the lead by deploying several of these systems across the Cotton Belt. In partnership with research ginning labs, U.S. Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service, the National Cotton Council, and several different departments at Cotton Incorporated, plastic contamination prevention and removal studies are happening in the field, in the gin and at spinning mills. These organizations also are exploring different wrapping materials for modules and bales across the nation.
A Group E ort
One of the Cotton Incorporated researchers intimately involved in the work is Dr. Ed Barnes in AERD. He notes how Cotton Incorporated is dedicated to maintaining a multi-divisional and industrywide strategy to addressing the very real threat of plastic contamination to U.S. cotton.
Industry personnel need to partner with colleagues in the fiber competition, product development and fiber processing departments of Cotton Incorporated to understand the effects of contamination in their respective areas of the supply chain. Their collaboration also is necessary to connect this research to the individuals at entities across the world by leveraging their relationships with textile mills.
Reports, collaborations and roundtable discussions have been instrumental in identifying ways the industry can decrease plastic overall and ensuring these efforts have a lasting effect. Pulling together experts from different organizations and the staff from other Cotton Incorporated departments is key in keeping contamination-free cotton front of mind.
“Just like with the seed quality discussion and our contamination partnerships, we want to bring people together to have open lines of communication,” Morgan says.
“When there is a new technology, a new idea or an emerging issue, the right people can quickly be assembled to be ready to work on this for the betterment of cotton growers everywhere.”
“We want to be able to leverage grower funds, researchers’ time and outside funding sources to make the biggest impact possible. These collaborative conversations don’t always have tangible results associated with them, but eventually they can provide a huge impact.”
Gaylon Morgan (right) with Cotton Incorporated teams with Reagan Noland from Texas A&M AgriLife Extension while visiting farm research plots in Texas.
Christi Short is the Southwest Regional Communications Manager for The Cotton Board. You can contact her at cshort@cottonboard.org.
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Texas A&M University Provides Expertise Through Education
Qualified, available labor is an issue that many industries and businesses across the country are facing. Fortunately for the cotton industry, Texas A&M University has been working to combat this with the agricultural systems management undergraduate degree program.
“As our world, and especially agriculture, becomes increasingly dependent on technology, there will naturally be a growing demand for managers with technical systems capabilities,” says Russell McGee, assistant professor and director of the undergraduate program for agricultural systems management at Texas A&M.
According to the website, AGSM program graduates “manage people, money and machines in the food and agriculture industries.” McGee says AGSM graduates have a wide range of career opportunities. The most common are technical sales and service for equipment manufacturers; grain, food and fiber processing managers; financial, insurance and consulting services; and construction, logistics, utilities and energy industries. “AGSM is a combination technical and business degree,” McGee says. “It evolved from the mechanized agriculture degree in 1988. I like to describe it as an ‘engineering-lite’ degree with a minor in business included. The ag engineers design the system; the ag systems graduates operate it using technical and business principles they learn in the AGSM degree.”
TCGA Provides Hands-On Experience
With the knowledge they gain during college, graduates of the degree program can be the perfect fit for the cotton ginning industry.
“Managing a gin is a complex operation, requiring fundamental knowledge of a diverse array of machinery, systems, a challenging workforce, risk management and business acumen,” McGee says. “As gin managers approach retirement age, they are wise to plan ahead and bring in a new talent who can learn at their elbow with a view toward filling their shoes in a few years. AGSM graduates are well suited to meet that challenge.”
It is not just coursework that makes a qualified employee though. They must have hands-on experience. The Texas Cotton Ginners’ Association saw a need for this and filled the void. Aaron Nelsen, TCGA director of communications, says members of the organization recognized a need to bring young people into the cotton industry, which was the driving force behind them creating the summer internship program.
“Our internship o ers a good dress rehearsal for each side,” Nelsen says. “The student is able to experience what a career in cotton ginning might look like. The host manager is able to evaluate a prospective employee for a few weeks during the summer. Without the internship, it is very likely most that come through our program would never set foot in a cotton gin. Thirty-three interns have been through our program from various universities, and we currently have 10 working in the industry full time. The partnership allows many AGSM students the chance to look at a career, such as managing a cotton gin.”
McGee says the networking of the students with those in the cotton industry has been beneficial for both parties.
“We have a network of industries and employers who favor our AGSM graduates for their work ethic and technical capabilities, but none stands out like the cotton industry,” McGee says. “TCGA has led the way in creating internship opportunities annually for AGSM students who are interested in cotton gins or the associated auxiliary industries.
“TCGA sta also provide guest lectures for classes and student club meetings and provide multiple projects for the students to work on for their senior projects. There are numerous ways that TCGA keeps the cotton industry visible and attractive for students to consider as a career path.”
‘Solving The Problems Of Tomorrow’
From shaping future leaders in the agriculture industry to providing qualified managers, McGee is proud of the work of the AGSM program and its graduates.
“Texas A&M has the only remaining academic department of agricultural engineering in the state,” McGee says. “The knowledge and skills we impart to graduates are vital in an agriculture industry that is growing more technically advanced, as well as maintaining core competencies that are necessary for emerging economies.
“AGSM graduates are attracted to our department because they enjoy the practical application, hands-on learning, and problem-solving. We take students with this aptitude and provide a college education that helps them see the horizon so they can anticipate and work toward solving the problems of tomorrow.”
This article was authored by Jayci Bishop with Plains Cotton Cooperative Association.
Cotton’s Calendar
Some listed events at https://www.cottonfarming.com/calendar/ may be canceled or postponed due to COVID-19. Please verify the status with the individual organizations. ¢ Jan. 4-6: 2022 Beltwide Cotton Conferences, San Antonio Marriott Rivercenter, San Antonio, Texas. ¢ Jan. 12-15: Southern Southeastern Annual Meeting, Westin, Hilton Head, South Carolina. ¢ Feb. 19-11: Louisiana Agricultural Technology & Management Conference, Paragon Casino Resort, Marksville, Louisiana.
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